off the curb and joins them. a small american flag in his hand, baldwin marched next to harry belafonte, who had also happens to be a u.s. navy veteran of world war ii, white secretaries an upstairs office windows kept extending thumbs down signs to baldwin, to the marchers, until suddenly many of them saw the stunningly handsome, rain matinee idol, harry belafonte in the crowd. [laughter] when they saw that beautiful cat, says baldwin, these women demonstrated that america was the most desperately schizophrenic of republic. [laughter] baldwins storytelling pros and his insights were never in better form. this was vintage james baldwin. race, sex, and his country all on extraordinary display and subject to his scorching ironic and. those young women in the windows, baldwin declared, quote could only look forward to an alliance with one of those jeering businessmen. and they were, he says, female, a word which in the context of the colored curtain has suffered the same fate as the word mail. baldwin did not miss h